love your home more with these house enhancement tips

3
Love Your Home More With These House Enhancement Tips It is imperative to do your best work on any improvement project. But the quality of the job may not be the only consideration. Above all, you must do the work in a safe environment. Do you not know where you can start concerning home improvement? You shouldn't worry about that because this article is going to provide you with what you need to start. When renovating a kitchen or bathroom, avoid using linoleum. The foremost reason for this is that linoleum has dropped out of vogue and can make your new renovation seem dated. Tile has a much better appearance, can be used in any situation where you might choose linoleum, and can even have radiant heat grids installed underneath for the extra touch of heated floors. When it comes to home improvement, be aware that you should never pay more than 35% of the project cost up front as a down payment. This is to ensure that you do not lose your money if the contractor backs out. Always pay by some method of payment that can be tracked such as check, instead of cash. Finally, only pay for the complete job when the job is actually completed. Any home will benefit from a regular painting schedule. Painting is one of those home improvement tasks that is not vital, but keeping up with it pays considerable dividends. A house which has been

Upload: cynicaloaf1043

Post on 19-Jul-2015

171 views

Category:

Documents


1 download

TRANSCRIPT

Love Your Home More With These House Enhancement Tips

It is imperative to do your best work on any improvement project. But the quality of the job may notbe the only consideration. Above all, you must do the work in a safe environment. Do you not knowwhere you can start concerning home improvement? You shouldn't worry about that because thisarticle is going to provide you with what you need to start.

When renovating a kitchen or bathroom, avoid using linoleum. The foremost reason for this is thatlinoleum has dropped out of vogue and can make your new renovation seem dated. Tile has a muchbetter appearance, can be used in any situation where you might choose linoleum, and can evenhave radiant heat grids installed underneath for the extra touch of heated floors.

When it comes to home improvement, be aware that you should never pay more than 35% of theproject cost up front as a down payment. This is to ensure that you do not lose your money if thecontractor backs out. Always pay by some method of payment that can be tracked such as check,instead of cash. Finally, only pay for the complete job when the job is actually completed.

Any home will benefit from a regular painting schedule. Painting is one of those home improvementtasks that is not vital, but keeping up with it pays considerable dividends. A house which has been

painted and repainted at frequent intervals will look more appealing to potential buyers.Homeowners that paint their houses regularly will also avoid the necessity of a major, expensivepaint job when they decide to sell their homes.

Use the area between the rafters of your ceiling and the joists of your floor for storing buildingmaterials. Large materials and long items can be tucked away easily. Just nail some furring stripsacross exposed joists and slide the material in.

Stairs can be a great addition to a home, but they can also be dangerous. Consider putting carpetingon your stairs to prevent any accidents. Going up and down the stairs in socks can be a neck-breaking accident if one slips on the wooden staircase. Try to look at different carpet or rug designsthat may look good on your stairs.

Put electrical wire connectors on your tubes of caulking! Those little plastic covers that come withthe tubes always go missing! A readily had replacement that works as good or better than theoriginal cap is an electrical wire connector. You can even use special colors for special types oftubes.

To save yourself time and trouble on future maintenance when you do any home improvement,remove water heaters from your attic. While attic water heaters save space, they are difficult tomaintain and offer the significant danger of ruining your ceilings (at the very least), if they ever leak.Relocating your water heater into a close,t costs very little space and adds, peace of mind.

If your room feels plain, add interest to it by choosing a heavily patterned rug. Stripes (horizontal orvertical), polka dots and swirls always make for a bold statement in your room. Don't be afraid to trynew things, even if at first glance they don't match. Try small swatches of a design before youpurchase the full product to make sure you like it.

If you are going to do a large renovation tocreate a large master bathroom considerinstalling a separate shower and bathtub. Thismay not seem like something that is thatimportant, but many buyers are moreinterested in homes that have separate areasfor both, since two people can get ready at thesame time.

Synthetic building materials have a place inhome improvement projects, and that place isusually outside. Synthetics tend to stand up tosun and weather better than the natural

materials they replace. (Stone is a notable exception to this rule.) For wood in particular, there are anumber of synthetic replacements that offerhttp://www.lowes.com/Flooring/Laminate-Flooring-Accessories/_/N-1z11ohf/pl similar attractivenessand superior durability.

So, 'that wall has got to go' on that home improvement project! Stop! Before you demolish

something double check the existing structure! It is easy to just tear down a wall and not know whatis inside of it. There may be electrical components that need to be in tact that you may want to keep.

Something that can be done in the way of home improvement is to theme your rooms. For exampleyou may want to have a teddy bear theme in one of your bathrooms and have a native Indian themein your living room. Doing this will add a level of flare and comfort to your home.

If you are buying a new bathtub, be sure to sit in grab the tub and lie back in it to be certain it's theright size and shape for you before purchasing it. Also, take good measurements of your bathroomspace to be sure the tub will fit in the space you have.

When it comes to recouping your investments on home improvements, it is vital to keep in mind howlong you are planning to own the property. Depending on the project, it can take many years to getthe value back out of a home improvement you have made. If you are not going to keep the house forseveral years, concentrate on only home improvements that add value for potential home buyers.

If the standpipe in your laundry room overflows when your washing machine drains, check for aclogged vent pipe (usually on your roof). You can also snake the drainpipe, as small socks or pocketdebris may exit the washer and become trapped in the pipe. If no clogs are located, you may need tomake the standpipe taller or replace it with a wider pipe that can handle your washer's output.

In the rooms with the most traffic, if you want to circulate air, use ceiling fans. These fans can helpsave energy from running the air conditioner and they can also push warm air down in the wintermonths. Most ceiling fans can be switched to pull the air up or push it down, in accordance withwhat is needed at the time.

Are you tired of linoleum and carpeting? Maybe it is time to install those hardwood floors that youknow will last a lifetime and beautify your home. Hardwood floors are elegant and tasteful, and theyare easy to maintain. Nice hardwood flooring shines and speaks volume about the value of yourhome.

You have a home and you want to make it an extension of yourself. If you have never done anythinglike that before, knowing where to start can overwhelm you. As was stated in the beginning, all ittakes is a bit of information. That information was presented to you here, so that you can have thehome you have been wanting.